After 90 provocative minutes, the petition by Howard Wharf for a special use permit to construct a 21-room hotel was delayed to the Planning Board’s July meeting.
The board was asked for an opinion of the plan’s consistency with the city’s Comprehensive Plan. Eventually, the hotel plan must go to the Zoning Board of Review, but that won’t happen until meetings are allowed to be held in person, once again.
Attendees to the virtual meetings have asked the board to treat all hotel projects equally, instead of “piecemeal.”
“There will be impact on the waterfront. The proliferation of hotels is concerning,” said Planning Board Chair Kim Salerno.
Salerno said the board’s role for the petition differed from that of Waites Wharf, and she urged proceeding with the petitions separately.
Resident Martha McConnell, a URI professor of oceanography, spoke up in the chat forum. “With the land use changing rapidly in Newport, the town does not yet know the social, economic, and environmental impact of the hotels currently under construction on Newport residents,” she said. “Will the Planning Board consider the impact of the hotels currently under construction on the town as a whole when evaluating whether another new hotel construction fits into Newport?”
McConnell said it was “extremely unfortunate” that the public could not weigh in on the Planning Board’s process.
In written findings, the Technical Review Committee voted unanimously at its May 13 meeting to forward the hotel plan development, urging approval, subject to the applicant’s continued work with the Department of Public Utilities on a stormwater connection.
“It has no existing drainage,” site engineer Lyn Small told the board. “We will have sewer. We haven’t exactly discussed with the Department of Public Utilities how they are going to make a connection [to existing sewer lines].”
She said the marina would benefit from a new drainage and filter system to be installed at the site.
But resident Chandler Hovey interjected during the chat. “Limiting each waterfront application to separate consideration means the Planning Board chooses to ignore consideration for the overall value of the harbor and Newport’s reputation as the City-by-the-Sea,” he said.
“The project isn’t assessed in isolation,” said Salerno, citing totality of such projects as they pertain to adherence to waterfront requirements within the city’s Comprehensive Plan.
As a condition for a special use permit, the board requires a recording of an easement to expand the harbor walk as shown on the plans.
When the board questioned if traffic would increase, traffic engineer Paul Bannon said it would decrease. But he said numbers could not currently be gathered because “summer conditions don’t exist.”
Attorney David Martland, representing the petitioner, added, “This is not a typical summer.”
“We don’t need speculation, we need numbers,” said Salerno.
There will be 50 parking spaces for the 21 rooms, six for 18 employees, 12 for the restaurant and 11 for others. “I’m not convinced about traffic,” said Salerno.
The public questioned how the building fit into the neighborhood. “A lot of Newport residents are concerned that the renderings of Hammets Wharf and Benton’s Wharf are not the reality today,” said McConnell.
She urged the board not to vote on any hotels during this age of virtual meetings, where the public cannot physically attend to speak.
The city’s Technical Review Committee began its review of the petition at its March 11 meeting. During a previous pre-application meeting, planning staff worked with the architect to improve the design. The Interdepartmental Traffic Committee reviewed the project and the driveway design was changed to be an extension of the sidewalk.
The stormwater system design was modified to capture the increased pollutants from the parking lot, as opposed to the roof. Renderings were updated to show the screened rooftop mechanicals. Helen Johnson, preservation planner, expressed concern about the use of synthetic trim materials, and wanted to make sure any plastic trim was brush-painted to temper its finish.
The TRC additionally wants the applicant to provide a comparison of the height of the proposed building to surrounding structures, and a roof plan with dimension showing the mechanical units and screening to both the Planning Board and Zoning Board.
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Howard Wharf Plan Continued to July - Newport This Week
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